Election Day 2018 started out rainy, but only less than a half-inch is expected by the afternoon, said National Weather Service meteorologist Sara Pampreen.

The National Weather Service said gusts as high of 35-40 mph Tuesday are expected. Showers could linger in the morning before the mercury rises into the mid-50s.

High winds can lead to downed electrical wires, so DTE Energy planning to stem any problems with outages that affect polling centers and elsewhere, the utility said Monday.

The utility normally has about 30 percent of its 800 to 900 overhead linemen tending to "reactive type work" in a given day, director Brian Calka said in a Facebook video post, on Tuesday "every one of them will be focused on restoration efforts or eliminating hazards for the public."

Staff are also being repositioned to ensure reports of downed lines are treated within 30-60 minutes, Calka said. "We have many, many hundreds of polling locations throughout our service territory that we will be focusing on very critically to ensure they get their power back as soon as possible."

By the time polls close at 8 p.m., temps should be in the mid-40s. But Wednesday on are the start of a trend toward cooler winter temperatures.